Cinnamon Swirl Holiday Loaf

This dough is soft, silky and cooperates beautifully when shaped. This cinnamon and sugar swirled yeast dough makes this a delicious addition to Christmas brunch. .

Makes: 1 Loaf

INGREDIENTS:

1 package active dry yeast

½ cup warm water (about 105-110 degrees)

½ cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

4 tablespoons butter

½ teaspoon salt

1 egg

3 cups all-purpose flour

FILLING:

2 tablespoons butter, softened

1/3 cup sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

ICING DRIZZLE:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon butter, melted

1 tablespoon milk

DIRECTIONS:

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water.

Combine milk, sugar, butter and salt in a small pan and warm over low heat until butter melts. Remove from the heat and allow liquids to cool slightly. Stir liquids into yeast mixture.

Add half the flour along with egg; beat for 3 minutes. Stir in remaining half of the flour and knead by hand or with your stand-mixer dough hook for 5 minutes until smooth and pulling away from the side of the bowls. Place dough in a greased bowl, cover the top of the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place for 1-1 ½ hours until doubled.

Punch down the dough. Roll dough into approximately a 9x18-inch rectangle. Combine sugar and cinnamon for filling and set aside. Spread softened butter evenly across the entire surface of the dough. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture across the entire surface of the dough.

Starting at the long edge, begin evenly rolling up the dough tightly to maintain the swirl pattern. Once rolled, use your hands to apply pressure inward to both ends to make the ends more uniform. Place loaf, seam side down, on a parchment lined baking sheet. Cover and allow to proof in a warm place for one hour.

Bake the loaf in a preheated 325F convection oven for 35-45 minutes. NOTE: Use 350F for thermal bake modes and allow for the longer baking time. When done, your loaf should be golden brown.

While the bread bakes, prepare the drizzle by mixing the icing ingredients until smooth. Allow the baked loaf to cool and drizzle the icing over the top of the loaf.

Optional: For an twist, add ¾ cup raisins to the dough with the first addition of flour.

TIP! To reduce last minute stress, most doughs can be placed in the refrigerator overnight for their final proof. Prepare and shape your dough and wrap loosely with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator to proof overnight. Take your dough out of the refrigerator and allow it to set on the counter for about 30 minutes at room temperature while your oven is preheating. After 30 minutes, place dough in the oven and complete baking according to your recipe instructions.